Local health officials encourage flu shot

January 11, 2013|TOM MOOR | South Bend Tribune

Leo Sweazy, 3, gets a little tickle from the FluMist vaccine that Leciesha Briggs, immunization nurse at the St. Joseph County Health Department, administered to him this morning. (South bend Tribune/SANTIAGO FLORES)

SOUTH BEND — Local health officials are encouraging residents to receive flu shots as states across the country continue to experience “moderately severe” outbreaks.

In Indiana, one of 41 states seeing widespread flu conditions, the number of flu-related deaths has risen to 15.

Nick Molchan, administrator at the St. Joseph County Health Department, said his office has issued several news releases about flu shots in recent weeks, but people have not been coming in as expected.

“It’s still not too late,” Molchan said today. “It takes a couple weeks to get full immunity, but if you wait longer, there’s still a chance to get sick.”

“It’s anybody’s guess as to why it’s been so bad,” he added. “We haven’t had a large amount of people coming together and getting shots. We haven’t had anywhere near the people coming in back when we had the H1N1 problem.”

Genessa Doolittle, epidemiologist for the Health Department, said providers out in the county are sending more positive flu results back to the department than in recent years.

“We’re definitely seeing more positive results this year than years past,” she said. “That could be because more providers are reporting them this year, or it could be more people are being tested than in years past. It follows a national trend of higher-than-normal influenza.

“We kind of assume even more people out there have the flu that are not being tested.”

Sue Coney, spokeswoman for the South Bend Community School Corp., said the district is continuing to monitor for possible flu outbreaks in schools. The district has a contract with Memorial Hospital to conduct such research.

“What (a Memorial employee) learned is, there has not been an increase in absences,” Coney said. “But the nurses are monitoring students who may call in with the flu and also checking to see if the kids received the flu shot.”

Clinics were set up in the fall to provide FluMist for students, she said.

Respiratory epidemiologist Shawn Richards of the Indiana State Department of Health said five new deaths were reported overnight from Thursday night into this morning, The Associated Press reported.

Aside from getting a flu shot, Molchan encouraged people to practice basic preventative measures — such as washing hands, covering your mouth when you cough and sneeze, and using hand sanitizer.

The American Lung Association in Indiana also encouraged people to take action, adding — along with Molchan’s tips — to stay home from work and school in order to not infect others and avoid touching eyes, nose and mouth, where germs spread quickly.

“We can’t emphasize enough how important it is and how easy it is to provide your family with as much protection as possible by getting vaccinated against the flu,” said Alison Martin, executive director of the American Lung Association in Indiana.

Martin added that high-risk groups, such as young children, pregnant women and older people, are at a higher risk.

Michigan has reported 338 confirmed flu cases.

“There are many more out there that have been confirmed by hospitals and local health departments,” state Department of Community Health spokeswoman Angela Minicuci told The Associated Press today. “This flu season is worse than others. It’s not slowing down yet.

“We’re not at an emergency level yet. We’re getting the message out to communities and we are watching what other states are doing.”